"Not a default unless your name's Novak Djokovic", "Outrageous": Fans vexed by Alex Michelsen evading default after hitting fan in Winston-Salem final

Tennis fans were left angry as they brought up Novak Djokovic after Alex Michelsen avoided being defaulted after accidentally hitting a fan during the final of the 2024 Winston-Salem Open yesterday evening. The chair umpire, Aurelie Tourte approached the spectator to check on them and ultimately decided not to default the American.

To prepare for the 2024 US Open, Michelsen competed in four hard court tournaments - the 2024 Mubadala Citi DC Open, the Canadian Open, the Cincinnati Open, and the Winston-Salem Open. He had a quarterfinal run at the Citi Open before falling to Flavio Cobolli. He lost in the first round to Kei Nishikori at the Canadian Open.

In Cincinnati, the 19-year-old fought his way into the main draw by winning the qualifying rounds. Then he defeated Tallon Griekspoor in the first round but fell to eventual champion Jannik Sinner in the second round.

Most recently, Alex Michelsen participated in the Winston-Salem Open where he was seeded 11th. He started his campaign in the second round after receiving a first round bye. He defeated Marton Fucsovics 7-6(3), 6-4 in the opening round. and then continued his winning streak by overcoming Zizou Bergs 6-1, 6-2 and wildcard Christopher Eubanks 7-5, 6-7(6), 7-6(5) in the third round and quarterfinals, respectively. He secured his spot in the final after Pablo Carreno Busta retired from their semifinal matchup.

At the summit clash, Michelsen was defeated by 10th seed Lorenzo Sonego, with a score of 6-0, 6-3. The win gave the Italian his fourth ATP title. At one point during the final match, Michelsen lost a point and in frustration, swung his racket forcefully, sending a ball flying into the stands and hitting a fan. The American immediately crouched down, holding his head in his hands, seeming upset by the accident.

Following the incident, the chair umpire, Aurelie Tourte, checked on the fan and chose not to default the 19-year-old player.

The decision to not default Alex Michelsen sparked outrage among tennis fans, who took to social media to express their anger and share their opinions on the same. Replying to a clip of the incident posted on X by Tennis TV, one said:

"It’s not a de fault unless your name is Novak Djokovic."

"Outrageous. If this was Novak Djokovic, he would've been defaulted on the spot," another said.

"Not even a supervisor called? Seriously??? Shapo gets defaulted for telling an obnoxious heckler to f*ck off and here the chair doesn't even call a supervisor for what is a 100%, clear as day default? Get it together, dear tennis officials! Please, get it together!" a third fan said.

"Players gets defaulted by saying f word but not for smashing ball into spectators, interesting…" yet another said.

Many more believed that if the player in question had been Novak Djokovic, he would have been defaulted without hesitation.

"We are in a time where we are seeing how every player is getting off easy for breaking a rule except Djokovic. It’s clear as day," a fan said.

"If Novak got defaulted couple years ago, Alex should have done too," another said.

"You don’t want to see players getting defaulted but I don’t see much difference between this incident and Novak’s US2020 default," one said.

Both Djokovic and Michelsen will kick off their campaign at the 2024 US Open by facing qualifiers.

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A look into Novak Djokovic & Alex Michelsen's US Open 2024 1R match

Novak Djokovic [Source: Getty]

Novak Djokovic will take on Radu Albot while Alex Michelsen will go up against compatriot Eliot Spizzirri in the first round. This year, the Serb will be defending his title at the New York Slam and will be aiming to claim his fifth US Open championship and his 25th Grand Slam title overall.

Albot earned his spot in the main draw after defeating Javier Barranco Cosano, Luca Van Assche, and Shintaro Mochizuki in the qualifying rounds. Meanwhile, Spizzirri secured his place in the main draw by overcoming Gregoire Barrere, Joris De Loore, and Joao Fonseca in the qualifying matches.

Should Djokovic emerge victorious in his first-round match against Albot, he will then face either Laslo Djere or Jan-Lennard Struff in the second round. Similarly, if Michelsen triumphs in his opening match against Spizzirri, he will go on to face either Jannik Sinner or Mackenzie McDonald in the second round.